Operation: Blitzkreig
by Gift of the Dragons
Summary: Request fic for signerleo. It starts out with a calm day on the beach for Leo and Ashley, but when a pair of Dark Signers challenge them to a duel, things turn downhill. And things only get worse from there. Warning: OC's, blood, mild violence.


A/N: This is a request fic for and written in collaboration with signerleo. The OC's Ashley, Toby and Maria, as well as all fictional cards introduced in this fic belong to signerleo. Without further ado, here is the fic.

* * *

They were lounging in their free time, waiting for the call that they hoped would never come, but secretly wished it would. It was exciting, going out in the streets, but it drained them so fast as soon as they were themselves again. For what seemed like the thousandth time, Toby paced the hall while Maria watched from the kitchen. On the table sat a single cordless phone, waiting, watching in silence. The screen suddenly lit up and Toby spun on his heel, ready to pounce at it. Maria, however, had gotten their first and was cradling it in her hands, stabbing at the receiver.

"Hello?" she asked, hoping it wasn't some crank call or an advertiser again. The phone probably wouldn't take another hit against the wall if it was.

"It's time," the other voice said, hanging up.

Maria slid her thumb over the OFF button, pressing on it lightly. She looked up at her brother, who was staring almost hungrily for the news. She nodded and he grinned, spun around again, and marched out the door, Maria scrambling to catch up. They had their mission and they were going to do it well.

* * *

He was lucky, he knew that. There was no one in the world that was as lucky as he was, to be dating a girl like Ashley. He wasn't much for words, but she was nothing less than perfection on Earth. Auburn hair, green eyes, a charming laugh and a voice smoother than silk– Yeah, Leo knew when Lady Fortune was on his side, and she was definitely rooting for him when he met Ashley.

Right now, she was checking over her cards; she specialized in an Ice deck, which perfectly supported her main Synchro monster, Red Blizzard Dragon. She bit her lip and shuffled through her cards again, back to the beginning. Leo gazed at her, a stupid grin forming on his face. It was so peaceful there, with the sound of cards being run through, the waves on the beach, the sound of running feet...

Wait, what?

Two kids, about their age were standing off to the left, disturbing grins plastered to their faces. One of them was a guy, with dark brown hair that was swept out to the sides and had bangs that hung down his forehead in a small 'W' shape with two longer spikes that framed his jaw, brushing his collarbone. His gray-green eyes were emotionless and cold, and matched the personality he gave off. His clothing consisted of a sky blue t-shirt, white cargo pants and white sandals.

The girl, by contrast, wore her sandy hair long and free, letting it reach down to her mid-back. Her bangs rested above her blue eyes, which in terms of warmth matched her companions. She had a pink sleeveless shirt and tan summer shorts, and hot-pink sandals.

What set the two of them off from being normal kids, besides their fake grins, were their Duel Disks.

They were fashioned in the shape of a dark dragon, the field spread out atop the dragon's wing. The Graveyard was opposite the Deck slot, set into both the back of the dragon's head and a ridged ear flap. The rest of the head made up the Deck slot, with the cards resting between its jaws. In short, those were the Duel Disks of a Dark Signer. So, that meant that those two were Dark Signers.

Leo's eyes widened in understanding and he shot to his feet. Beside him, Ashley had come to the same conclusion, her Deck held up threateningly; n a dangerous tone, she growled, "Come one step closer and we'll rip you to shreds with our Decks."

Mentally, Leo whistled with appreciation. He always loved Ashley's dueling side, which was such a far cry from her normal personality. Cunning but ruthless, she made for a terrifyingly skilled player once she trapped you in the jaws of her Ice Deck. Nearly impossible to escape from. But the male Dark Signer laughed, the noise sending chills down Leo's spine.

"We already know about your Decks, honey," he taunted in a sickeningly sweet voice. "We'll beat them, right Maria?"

"Yup," 'Maria' said with cheer, "and once they're beaten, they'll never regret it. First move, Toby?"

"Absolutely," he answered, a shark-like grin stretching across his face.

"Ashley," Leo said, "we aren't going to lose to these two. I've got Toby, you get Maria. Let's get this duel started!"

"We know your decks all too well," Maria chuckled. "We have the perfect decks to destroy you two. And when we win, we'll take you to our master. He has _special plans_ just in store for you two Signers."

"Let's show them how good we are," Ashley said, strapping on her Duel Disk and tossing Leo his.

"I'll start things off," Maria yelled, suddenly dark and menacing. "I summon Red Eyes Black Chick and send it to the Graveyard to summon Red Eyes Black Dragon. I activate Red Summon, which allows me to summon a monster in defense position. I'll end my turn with three cards face-down."

"She has Red Eyes," Ashley whispered in awe, staring at the bony black beast.

"My turn," Toby interrupted. "I draw." He smirked at the card he drew and played it. "I play Darkness Blade, and can now summon three monsters this turn: Psychic Commander, Destructotron and Telekinetic Shocker. Now, with Retell Wave, I can lower my Commander's level to one and can tune the three of them to play my Synchro monster.

"When the shadows are devoured by darker shadows, the curtain pulls back and reveals a world without light! Come forth, Hyper Psychic Blaster!"

"What is that thing?" Leo asked, voice bordering on fearful. "It has three thousand attack points!"

"I end my turn by placing three cards face-down," Toby finished, a satisfied look on his face.

"They're stronger than they look," Ashley admitted, "but we won't lose to them! I summon Ice Dragon Level 3, and when it's summoned, I can send it to the Graveyard to summon Ice Dragon Level 5." The smaller dragon was quickly replaced with a larger, fiercer one that eyed the dragon and Psychic Synchro hungrily. "I play the spell card Level Up! I can send Ice Dragon Level 5 to the Grave so I can special summon Ice Dragon Level 7!" The dragon was again replaced, this time with a snowstorm. A pair of red eyes gleamed from the miniature natural disaster, waiting for the command to fight.

"Ice Dragon, attack Red Eyes Black Dragon."

A serpentine being lunged out of the cold winds, latching onto the pith black dragon. It flinched and raged before bursting into pixels, Maria groaning as Ice Dragon's three hundred point advantage hit her, dropping her Life Points to 3700.

"Now I can play Ice Cave; with this card, your defense monster is destroyed and I can summon another monster in attack position. Go, Ice Nova Dragon! Attack directly!" A second dragon came onto the field with a burst of light and sprang at the female Dark Signer, latching onto her arm. The girl screamed again as the dragon released her and returned to its former position. "I end my turn," Ashley said, somewhat smug with the extra seven hundred point loss.

"I activate my face-down Trap Card, Call of the Dragon. Now your Ice Dragon is mine for three turns," Maria smirked, wincing as the pain flared with the movement.

"Wha–" Ashley cried as her dragon switched sides.

"My turn," Leo said, swiping a card off his deck. "I draw. I play Morphtronic Summoner, and can play two monsters this turn. I summon Morphtronic Scopen and Boomboxen, and tune them up to summon Power Tool Dragon." A yellow mechanical dragon roared as it came into play. "I can use his effect to pick three cards from my deck, and you pick one that I can keep."

"Cool," Toby complimented, nodding in appreciation. "Left."

"Then I equip Power Tool Dragon with Double Tool C & D, and he gains another one thousand attack points. Now, Power Tool, attack Hyper Psychic Blaster!" Toby growled as he lost three hundred Life Points and his Synchro. "I end my turn with one face-down card."

"I draw," Maria began, "and I play Monster Reborn to summon Red Eyes Black Dragon. I now send him back to the Grave to summon Red Eyes Darkness Dragon, and play my Trap Card Metal Wave so I can summon Red Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon, who gains four hundred attack points for every dragon in my Graveyard."

The now-beefed up Red Eyes crowed as he gained twelve hundred attack points, boosting him up to an even five thousand.

"Now, I think it's time for a little payback," Maria said sweetly, eyes flashing. "Red Eyes Metal Darkness Dragon, crush that little Ice Nova Dragon."

The lumbering giant took one step forward. The smaller creature squealed as it was squished flat, but there was no indication that Ashley lost Life Points.

"Ice Nova Dragon's effect keeps me from taking Battle Damage from Dragon-type monsters," Ashley mocked.

"Fine then, Ice Dragon Level 7, attack her directly."

Ashley screamed as the dragon attacked her, eyes gleaming as it retreated. She panted for a few moments before spitting something onto the sand. It was a striking red color and she had to force herself to look away and realized, with a pang, her Life Points had dropped to 1000.

"Are you alright Ashley?" Leo asked, concerned but unable to move due to the rules of the game.

"I'm fine," she answered with a weak smile.

"I'll end now," Maria said."

"Then I'll start by drawing a card. I play Darkness Reborn to summon two Level 1 monsters, Doctor Cranium and Mind Master." A big-headed, purple skinned scientists materialized on the field, wearing a helmet with light bulbs sticking out of it every which way, flanked by what looked like a pot with a blue glowing brain encased inside. "I use Mind Master's effect to Special Summon another Doctor Cranium," Toby said, wincing as he lost 800 Life Points to its effect. "I now tune Mind Master to my Doctor Cranium so I can play Psychic Dragon."

With the normal effects of Synchro Summoning, a neon green dragon with purple orbs on its elbows, knees and chest appeared, its fluorescent green wings loosely folded behind it. It haughtily glanced at its opponents with calculating violet eyes.

"Destroy Power Tool Dragon." Without making a move, the yellow machine-dragon was destroyed. "When Psychic Dragon is summoned, I can destroy one monster on the field," Toby said, giving another shark grin. "Now I use De-Spell to destroy your face-down card, Leo." The card pulled itself up, revealing itself to be a Spell and was destroyed. "Psychic Dragon, attack Leo directly!"

"What?" was all the eleven year old got out before the dragon used its mind attack on him. Leo clutched at his head, groaning as his Life Points went down to 2300. The attack mercifully stopped, leaving him with a blinding headache.

"I end my turn. It won't be long now until you two brats are defeated," Toby said with a smirk.

"Don't listen to him Leo!" Ashley yelled. "It's my turn! I summon Ice Nova Dragon! Its second effect allows for me to summon it back onto the field from the Graveyard if it was destroyed by a Dragon-type monster," the girl said with a grin. "I play Dance Princess of the Ice Barrier, and three Level Up cards. Now Ice Nova Dragon is Level 4, and I can tune it with Dance Princess to Synchro Summon Red Blizzard Dragon."

A red haze descended on the field, turning the sand icy. Both Dark Signers looked around warily for the monster, unsure why it hadn't appeared. With a loud _crack_ and a roar, a red scaled snake burst from the sand, crystalline wings dispersing the mist. The dragon glared down at the Dark Signers from above with golden eyes, baring its white needle-like teeth.

"I play Blizzard Wave, and Red Blizzard Dragon gains one thousand Attack for every Dragon-type and Ice-type monster on the field." The serpent-like dragon spread its wings out, glowing with scarlet energy as it was boosted three thousand points. "Now, Red Blizzard Dragon, attack Red Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon!"

With a mere 1000 point advantage, the ice ruler wrapped around the giant, squeezing it until it burst. The attack hit Maria, who yelled as she dropped to 1000. The girl snapped something unintelligible at Ashley as she shakily stood back up.

"I end my turn."

"It's my turn!" Leo said, rejuvenated with Ashley's star monster taking the field. "I play Dragon Reborn to summon Power Tool Dragon back onto the field. I summon Morphtronic Lantron, so tuunne them up! And I summon Life Stream Dragon and equip it with Life Stream to double its Attack Points."

"It has 5800 Attack Points," Toby cursed.

"Now, Life Stream Dragon, attack Psychic Dragon!" Toby went down from 2900 to 1100, groaning with the hit. He still kept his cool better than his partner had, however. "I'm not finished yet! I play my Spell Card Life Stream Blaster, so I can take 1000 Life Pints from you."

"What?!" Toby dragged out, growling as he fell to a measly 100 Life Points.

"I end my turn with a face-down," Leo said, heart pounding with excitement. They were going to _win_!

"Play time's over, kiddies! I draw," Maria said. "I play Dragon Stones, which allows me to summon my Red Eyes Black Chick from the Graveyard, and a second from my Deck in Defense mode. I play the Field Spell card, Dark Mountain. I can summon an extra monster every turn. I summon Earthbound Linewalker!" A man wearing a gray cloak lined with the Earthbound's symbols came onto the field, hands held out to either side. "Now I sacrifice my Red Eyes Black Chicks for Earthbound Immortal: King of Darkness!"

A giant shadow rose up from behind her, covered in gray lines that all the Earthbound Immortals bore. Its eyes glowed white, and in its right hand, it carried a giant two-headed axe. No other features were visible, due to the shadows cloaking its body.

"Leo, it has 3400 Attack Points," Ashley warned.

"Attack the girl!" Maria screeched.

In a blur of darkness, the monster rushed Ashley and destroyed her monster, crushing her Life Points to 0. She yelled in pain as the darkness enveloped her, taking her from sight.

"Ashley!" Leo yelled, desperate to find her. "What did you do to her?!" he screamed at the Dark Singers.

Maria grinned toothily, only saying "I end."

"And now it's your turn, _boy_. I play Skip Summon, and can now play Earthbound Immortal: Psychic Demon directly to the field. Any last words, before you perish?"

Leo gulped as a demonic creature rose up behind his opponent, its Earthbound lines a bright white. The monster was dark, like its companion, but gave off a visible otherworldly energy, misty like smoke.

"No? Then die."

The demon slowly, deliberately came forward. It looked contemplative as it stared down at Leo, who was shaking in fear. The demon bent down and punched the sand before its opponent, knocking him back. Leo felt something crack as he hit the ground again, and he managed to cough once before the pain overtook him, bruises already springing to life on his visible skin.

Toby sneered down at the boy and looked over to Maria. She nodded confirmation and he picked up the boy, noting with pleasure that the Heart of the Dragon, the symbol that had marked him as a Signer, had disappeared.

* * *

"I'm worried about them, Luna," Akiza said, turning on her heel so she could stride across the room again, adding another turn so she could repeat the action.

"About what? Leo's my twin, I'd know if anything happened to him," the younger girl reassured.

"But they've been gone for hours. And I was really looking forward to that party," the older sighed, giving up on her pacing so she could lean against the wall, arms loosely crossed. "We've been working really hard on it for the past few days, and they're not even going to be here to see it." When no response came, Akiza looked over to the twin. "Luna?"

"Just fine," she said with a weak smile, one hand holding her head. "I think you were right to be worried. Something's happened to Leo."

* * *

"Here we are, Master Lester!" Toby yelled, holding up his prize as he moved over the catwalk. "Just like you asked, two Signers ready to be served."

The red haired man didn't smile or laugh at the joke, only waited patiently fro his two Dark Signers to come forward. Toby was holding the green-haired child, who was unconscious and heavily bruised. Such after effects were normal, s Lester knew, for opponents that faced Toby's Psychic Demon. Maria was dragging along the brown-haired girl, hair fanned out behind her and covering her features. She appeared to be less injured than the boy, which was unusual; Maria liked to play with her food before she pulverized it.

"You have prepared them?"

"Yessir, their marks are gone." Maria twisted the girl around, baring her arm. The crimson mark that was usually there was now absent, as was the same for the boy.

"Would you like to do the honors?" Lester asked, gesturing at the railing of the catwalk.

"Thank you, Master Lester."

Toby bowed, and unceremoniously hurled Leo over the edge. Ashley fell moments after, and the three of them watched as the two former Signers dropped into the Reactor Core, and were swallowed by the bright light. Gesturing to the two duelists, Lester led them further into the abandoned ruins.

"They'll come out when they're ready. In the meantime, I would like for you two to watch the perimeter. I don't need any unwanted visitors coming before those two are ready."

"Yes, Master Lester." The both of them bowed and followed him away from the core, which had begun turning dark.

* * *

"And you're sure this is where Leo is?" Akiza asked for the third time.

"Yes, I'm sure. Come on, it's not like he's going to save himself!" Luna said, impatient to get moving. She had this horrible sinking feeling that something had already happened to her twin brother and it was already too late to help him.

'_Come on, Luna,'_ she said to herself. _'Stop thinking like that! It's only worst when you stop hoping.'_

With that somewhat encouraging thought in mind, the two girls entered the dilapidated building before them, standing on the far side of the Satellite. The first room was dark and fairly cramped; Luna believed it was originally used as a closet, or possibly began as a fallen elevator. The doors were opened with some effort on the Signers' part, and they found themselves in a surprisingly well lit and spacious room. Relaxing on a couch on the opposite side were two people, one a guy and the other a girl.

"Well, it's taken you two long enough," the boy said, stretching as he stood.

"We would have turned to stone if you waited any longer," the girl commented.

"Who are you?" Akiza asked. She was getting a bad feeling from these two...

"That's not the question you should be asking. Instead, you should have said, 'Where's Leo? Where's Ashley?'" the girl mocked in a falsetto.

"But we won't tell you," the boy said. "Not unless you can defeat us in a duel." He slid out a Deck from a cartridge hanging off his belt, a grin on his face. "You won't defeat us, though."

"Nope, never," the girl said.

"Oh yeah?" Akiza said. "Then bring it on!"

"We're going to win this duel!" Luna yelled. "And then you'll tell us where my brother and Ashley are!"

"You know how it goes," the boy said in a bored tone, waving one hand. "It's our job as Dark Signers to kill you. But don't worry, when we defeat you two, you won't die. No, Master has other plans for you; but that's all in good time."

"Since we all know we're going to win," the girl snickered, "you two can go first. Toby, you take Luna. I want that brat Akiza. Now, let's start that duel."

"I am not a brat!" the psychic duelist immediately fumed. She gasped as she realized something. "Wait, you two are the kids that went missing! Trudge told us you just disappeared."

"Uh-huh," Toby said. "You've got that right."

"And Master Lester will be happy once you two are defeated," the girl, identified as Maria, added, somewhat sulky now that the duel had been postponed.

"Wait, Lester? You don't mean..." Luna trailed off.

"So you remember him, Luna. Good. But the time for small talk is over," Maria snarled.

"I'll go first," Akiza said, quickly prepping her Duel Disk and drawing her hand. "I draw and place two cards face-down. Next, I summon Twilight Rose Knight in Attack mode and play Rose Summer; I can give my Rose Knight an extra 1000 points for three turns. I end my turn."

"Then it's my turn," Luna said, drawing her card. "I'll draw. I play one card face-down and end my turn by summoning Sunlight Unicorn in Attack position."

"You call that a move, Luna? I'll show you what a true Signer can do," Toby insulted. "I draw, and play two cards face-down. I activate my Spell Chaos Wave. Now, I can summon monsters whose total Level would be six without sacrificing. All I have to do is send the top five cards of my Deck to the Grave. I now summon Overdrive Teleporter.

"I activate Overdrive Teleporter's effect. I can pay 2000 Life Points to summon three Psychic monsters: Psychic Snail, Psi-Blocker and Psychic Wizard of Silence."

"He summoned four monsters in one turn?" Akiza said, amazed.

"I can now send my three newest monsters to the Graveyard. Behold! When the shadows are devoured by even darker shadows, the curtain pulls back and reveals a world without light! Come forth, Dark Hyper Psychic Blaster! I can use his effect to send him to the Graveyard and summon Hyper Psychic Blaster/Assault Mode."

"It has 3500 Attack," Akiza ground out.

"Now, attack Twilight Rose Knight!"

"Ah-ah, not so fast," Akiza said in a lighter tone, wagging one finger. "I activate my face-down, Rose Wave. Your Battle Phase has ended."

"Think again, brat," Toby smirked. "I activate Psychic Control, which negates and destroys your trap."

"No," she breathed, realizing her mistake in dueling him.

A sudden force constricted her, making her chest feel like it was being crushed with the attack, and she coughed harshly, falling to her knees. The kid was a Psychic duelist, like her. She would have yelled if she could, but she had no breath left. Just when it felt like she would pass out from a lack of oxygen, the tightness loosened and she breathed in as much air as she could with her bruised lungs, coughing as the damaged organs protested the abuse.

"Are you alright Akiza?" Luna asked, concerned. Her Life Points had dropped to 2500, which had to be a hard hit.

"And because of my monster's effect," Toby said, ignoring the downed duelist, "you take damage equal to that of your monster's Attack."

Another blast of pain hit the Signer as she lost another two thousand Life Points,, more severe than the last. If she didn't know better, she would have sworn she was dying. But the pain subsided, unmercifully leaving her bruised, aching body behind on the ground. The best she could manage was a weak kneel, unable to stand back up on her own.

"Akiza," Luna said, wincing at her friend's pain.

"I'll be fine, Luna," Akiza lied, putting a smile on her face for the younger girl's sake.

"Aw, what's wrong, Akiza? Tired already? Well that's too bad, I'm not finished yet. The damage _you_ took from your monster's Attack, I get restored." The counters showed his Life Points jumping back up to 4000.

"I play my other face-down card," Akiza wheezed, "Weekly Rose. I get 1000 Life Points back for every card I send from the top of my Deck to the Graveyard. I'll send three." Her Life Points climbed back to 3500, but the pain and bruises didn't appear, not that she expected them to.

"Huh," Toby harrumphed. "You just saved yourself from losing, witch. Good, I didn't want to defeat you before I played my Immortal. Overdrive Teleporter, attack the brat."

The monster suddenly appeared in front of Akiza and snatched her hair. With its free hand, it hit her with an uppercut to the stomach, making the Signer yell with the sudden pain. This time she was sure something had been seriously damaged; the crack and the blood she coughed up only further proved the thought. The monster let her go, returning to its side of the field and Akiza fell onto her hands and knees again, one arm cradling her injured ribs. She shakily stood up, running her other hand against her mouth and smearing the blood there. Luna had heard stories about Akiza being a vampire when she was the Black Rose Duelist; seeing her now, with her face pale from pain and blood covering her face, she definitely looked like one.

"Akiza, you're hurt," Luna said in an undertone. "Are you sure you'll be able to handle it?"

"I'll be fine Luna." It was meant to come out in a snappish tone, but her voice cracked and shook, ruining the effect.

"Considering that you only went down to 1500," Toby observed, "that was a lot more brutal than I expected." He grinned again, saying, "I liked it."

"My turn!" Maria said in a sing-song voice, clearly enjoying the violence. "I summon Shadow of Red Eyes in Attack mode and play Summon Deal 2. By paying 2000 Life Points, I can summon another monster and can receive the Life Points at the end of the turn that I paid. I summon Dark Magician Girl." Luna started at the rare card's name; Akiza was too weak to react.

"Now I activate the Spell Card Burning Red Eyes. Say good bye to your face-down card Luna, you little brat," Maria said, voice morphing from its sing-song manner into a spiteful bark.

"No!"

"Shadow of Red Eyes, attack Luna's Sunlight Unicorn." Luna winced, but since there was only a one hundred point difference between the monsters, the most she received was a set of scratches down one arm from the draconic shadow. "Dark Magician Girl, attack Luna directly."

The Spellcaster, however, was another matter entirely. Luna's entire body locked up with the first spell that was cast, keeping her from moving. Next was the damaging spell. She yelled as the purplish energy hit her, dispersing into the ground and the air as it worked its deadly claws into her. There was no physical damage that could be seen, but not all scars are visible. Luna nearly collapsed as she was released from the initial spell, knees shaking from weakness. In total, her Life Points had gone from 3900 to 1900.

"They're strong," Luna stuttered to herself, "but I can't give up."

"I'll end my turn," Maria said, voice gleeful.

"Then it's my turn," Akiza said, voice shaking, but she either didn't notice or didn't care. "I activate Monster Reborn to summon Twilight Rose Knight to the field, and I also summon Lord Poison. Now I activate Rose Knight Summon, so I can Special Summon another Rose Knight. Now I can send my Rose Knight to the Graveyard to summon Rose Tentacles, and give Lord Poison a little tune up.

"Let the spirit of the earth intertwine with the essence of the sky; I Synchro Summon Black Rose Dragon!"

A black-scaled dragon came roaring onto the field, furious that its master had been injured. It shook its body out as it bellowed, displaying the full blood-red rose that adorned the majority of its torso, forever frozen in full bloom.

"I play Black Rose Cage; as long as this Field Spell is out, my monsters will receive an extra 1000 Attack points and your monsters lose 200 Attack, Toby. Black Rose Dragon, destroy Hyper Psychic Blaster/Assault Mode."

The dragon growled and, with needle-like teeth, took the monster by the neck and threw it into the air, where it heavily landed on its master, exploding into light and damaging him in the process. The boy fell over as the monster landed on him, but quickly picked himself up, not wanting to look weak in front of the Signers. His Life Points had only dropped to 3800, which wasn't significant damage at all.

"Now go, Rose Tentacles, attack Toby's Overdrive Teleporter!"

The rose-faced monster wrapped its tentacles around the monster, squeezing it into submission much as its master had done to the rose-monster's master. Toby similarly felt the squeeze, grunting as the monster was destroyed and his Life Points fell to 1600.

"You brat," he spat. "There's no way you're getting away with tying me up."

"I'll end my turn with Black Rose Sword; for three turns, you can't attack me, Toby."

"You brat," he spat. "There's no way you're getting away with tying me up."

"I'll end my turn by playing Black Rose Sword; now, for three turns, you can't attack me Toby."

"I'll draw," Luna said, "and I play Call of the Haunted to bring back my Sunlight Unicorn. I play Dragon Reborn, to summon two Dragon Tokens and make one of them a Tuner. I can tune them with my Unicorn and let the magic that lives in each of these creatures merge and become one! That's right –I Synchro Summon the mighty, the majestic, the one and only, Ancient Fairy Dragon!"

The feminine dragon appeared on the field, her pale, transparent pink insect-like wings fluttering in concern as she looked to Luna. With a nod of encouragement, she glared at the Dark Signers that dared to harm her Signer, her armor glinting dangerously under the bright light.

"Now I can play Ancient Force, and destroy all the cards on your side of the field."

"What?!" Maria yelled in disbelief.

"Ancient Fairy Dragon, attack Maria directly!"

With distinct pleasure, the odd serpentine-insect dragon smashed her tail into the Dark Signer, pleased with the fact that her Signer's opponents could be damaged as much as the two girls had been. After Maria had picked herself up with the attack, her Life Points crashing into 1900, she looked over to Toby.

"How are we being hurt by them?" she asked. Toby tilted his head in thought, ignoring their opponents.

"Perhaps it's the duels. We hadn't had time to exactly 'rest and recover' from the last one, so we're not quite prepared for this one."

"Makes sense," Maria agreed.

"I'll end my turn with one face-down card and Dragon Cage. You can't attack me, and I can't attack you for two turns," Luna wrapped up.

"My turn! I'll draw. Akiza, I swear that you're going to pay," Toby threatened. "I play two cards face-down and end my turn with one face-down monster in Defense."

"And it's my turn. Luna, you'll pay for that humiliation. I play Fusion Gate, and can fuse three Red Eyes Darkness Dragons from my Deck to summon Ultimate Red Eyes Darkness Dragon!" Maria crowed.

"What?!" Luna yelled.

"It gets better; just be patient. I end my turn with a face-down."

"Then I'll draw," Akiza said.

"Black Rose Dragon, attack Toby's face-down monster."

"Not so fast Akiza," Toby scolded, mimicking her finger wagging from earlier. "I flip my Gate Guardian. Your attack is now over."

"Fine," the girl grumbled.

"I draw, and move my Dragon to Defense position to end my turn," Luna said.

"My turn," Toby said. "I play the Spell Say Goodbye. Say bye to your spell, Akiza. Now play time is over; I play the Spell Card Cloner, and can play a copy of my face-down monster if I have one. Next I play Immortal Summon, and can pay all but one of my Life Points to summon three monsters which I can tune together to play Psychic Destroyer. I can also play the Spell Star Blaster, and lower the levels of the monsters in my hand by four. I send my face-downs to the Graveyard so I can summon my Earthbound Immortal: Psychic Demon."

"Oh no," Akiza whispered, face paling to the color of flour.

"And now, since Spell Cards don't affect my Psychic Destroyer, it can attack Black Rose Dragon _and_ Rose Tentacle." The dragon was quickly crushed beneath the shadowy demon's fist, as was the plant-monster. Akiza felt an odd moment of déjà vu but recovered as she noticed that her monsters had reappeared on Toby's side of the field. "So you noticed," he said offhandedly. "One of Psychic Demon's effects is that when he destroys two or more of my opponent's monsters, they are Special Summoned to my side of the field.

"Now I can activate the Quick Spell Psychic Doom. By lowering Rose Tentacles to 700 Attack and attacking you with it, and preventing Black Rose Dragon from attacking, hen Psychic Demon can attack you directly. Rose Tentacles, attack Akiza."

Just as Toby had vowed, Rose Tentacles wrapped its thorny arms around its former owner, squeezing the girl down to 100 Life Points. The thorns bit into her skin, dribbling blood wherever they scratched her, ripping her clothes in the process. The psychic duelist was violently thrown down to the ground as the attack ended.

"Akiza!" Luna yelled. "Snap out of it, you're stronger than that! We can pull off the win!"

"I play Chaos Win," Toby said, ignoring the green-haired girl. "You can't use face-downs or any cards in your hand. Earthbound Immortal: Psychic Demon, finish her off."

With a lazy swipe, Akiza's Life Points fell to 0 and she struck the wall to her left. The blow knocked the breath out of her lungs, and the meeting with the concrete wall didn't help matters any. She let out the barest of whimpers from pain before falling into blissful unconsciousness. Toby grunted in disappointment, inspecting his fallen opponent with a critical eye.

"No," Luna whispered.

"I'll end my turn," Toby said, not paying attention. "Don't worry, girlie. You won't be alone for long."

"It's my turn and I start by drawing. It's time for you to lose! I play Dragon Grounds and can summon three Red Eyes Black Chicks from my Deck onto the field. I can now sacrifice them for my Earthbound Immortal." Luna said nothing, only stared up at the new monster with wide eyes.

"I summon Earthbound Immortal: Cyber Burning Shadow Dragon."

The Immortal was different than the one she had been loaned for the last duel, but Luna didn't know that. The monster was an odd combination of dark flesh and metal plating; its right wing was a fan of deadly blades, the right arm and left half of the chest entirely technological. The left half of its head was also replaced with metal, its eye an extending weapon's sights. The Earthbound lines were also unusual, fading between steel gray and crimson red.

"The best part is that it has 4000 Attack," Maria said dreamily. "Now, Ultimate Red Eyes Darkness Dragon, destroy Ancient Fairy Dragon!" Luna groaned as the Ultimate dragon shredded Ancient Fairy without remorse, ripping her apart as easily as one would paper. "You also lose an extra 1000 Life Points whenever Ultimate Darkness Dragon destroys one of your monsters."

Luna openly screamed this time as the false claws shredded into her, giving the false impression that she was being gutted by a creature with long, sharp claws. There was, of course, no such creature performing such actions on her, but that was what Toby's psychic abilities did. They messed with your mind.

"Earthbound Immortal: Cyber Burning Shadow Dragon, finish her off!"

With only 900 Life Points left, Luna didn't stand a chance. The monstrous dragon stood at its full height and dispersed itself into a dusty substance. The twin was confused at first until the dark mist surrounded her. All the two Dark Signers could see was the black haze, but her screams pierced through perfectly, as though there was nothing in the way. Once the dragon disappeared, Luna was left on the ground, curled up into a ball and shivering. Maria kicked her with one foot, rolling her over, smirking at the whimper she let loose.

"Eh, good enough," she said with a shrug. "Once they wake up, they'll be Dark Signers. Not like it matters if Little Miss Princess here has a few nightmares along the way."

* * *

"We have them!" Maria excitedly yelled, forgetting her manners and immediately crossing the room to where Lester was sitting.

They were in one of the observation rooms, where the scientists that worked on the Ener-D reactor years ago. Lester was looking in to the reactor room, where the dark energy being emitted by the reactor was beginning to fade, slowly being replaced by the normal white light it usually gave off. His eyes flicked over to his Dark Signer, who blushed and bowed deeply, recognizing her mistake.

"We have successfully captured the Signers, Master Lester," Toby said, far more carefully than his partner, whose embarrassed blush deepened further.

"Take them down to the cells and once you're finished, go to the healing chambers and _stay _until you two are both in full health," Lester ordered. Maria entirely forgot her embarrassment and looked up in shock, Toby mimicking her. "You two have been working yourselves hard, and you'll need to be at full strength for the next phase."

Both muttered a, "Yes Master," and scurried off, taking the Signers with them. Lester quickly returned his attention back to the window and noticed that the Ener-D reactor had returned to normal.

Sparing a glance in the direction the Dark Signers had gone off to, he said to himself, "They're still not ready to use their true powers yet, but in time, it'll get easier." He sighed before continuing with, "But perhaps these two will learn a little faster."

With purpose, he navigated the halls of the old lab, and found himself on the catwalk above the reactor. Here, where just a few hours ago, the eleven-year-olds had been tossed over the side like chum in the ocean. They were still around, he could feel it. He _knew_ it; that hadn't been the first time someone had been killed at his order, nor would it likely be the last. There was an odd clanking sound behind him, and when he turned, the two former Signers were there as expected.

Their clothes were tattered but the old injuries were gone, and both were unconscious. Lester knew that if he checked their arms, they would have the telltale Mark of the Shadows, which confirmed their new existence. But there was no reason to check yet, since he'd first have to get them clothing that wasn't so ripped up. With an ease that greatly defied his stature, he lifted both into his arms and walked down the catwalk without so much as breaking a sweat.

* * *

'_Where am I?' _was Akiza's first thought as her eyes fluttered open, revealing a dark expanse. With a groan, she rolled over onto her side and immediately regretted the move. Her ribs throbbed with pain from the multiple beatings they took earlier and forced her to cough, further aggravating the injuries. It quickly turned into a vicious cycle that left her gasping for air, a puddle of blood staining the ground before her and her lips, and one arm wrapped around her now sulking ribcage. She kept her breaths shallow, as she had quickly learned that deep breaths did more to hurt than they did help.

With great ease, Akiza lifted herself to her feet, mindful of the sensitive injuries that hindered her. She was locked in a small room, about seven-by-four feet, with one wall open to the hall that lined the room. Between her and freedom, however, was a line of metal bars that seemed to have no door to speak of. The other walls were made of smooth, gray stone, which left a fine, silky residue on her fingers when she touched them. There were no windows to speak of, and the only light she could see came from a stuttering out-of-date overhead light that threatened to die on her at any moment.

The Psychic duelist hugged her knees to her chest, wincing at the dull pain that accompanied the move. She had failed. She had failed herself, she had failed Luna, Leo, Ashley, everyone. Even Yusei. Akiza shook her head hard, forcing the thought away. She may have failed once, but she could try again. It couldn't be too late, it just couldn't.

The girl forced herself to her feet, wincing at the stab in her chest, and shuffled over to the bars. A quick pull with her free hand proved them to be solid, and the stench that came off them was metallic. She wasn't an expert in metals, but she guessed these to be iron or steel, from their grayish, almost silvery appearance. There was no rust visible, only a pure silver that reflected the dying light above.

Akiza stepped back and looked at the bars again. They were evenly spaced, and had extra support from a pair of horizontal bars that ran parallel to the floor and the ceiling, roughly six inches from the top and bottom of the cell. There wasn't a lot of space between each bar, but she was desperate enough to try almost anything. Sucking in a deep breath, she tried to squeeze herself between the bars.

It almost worked.

She got caught halfway through, and no matter what she tried, Akiza couldn't get out. Somehow, she had gotten half her body stuck in the bars of the cell, so she was suspended uncomfortably with neither foot touching the ground nor the supporting bar that rest just below her toes. The position helped her injuries none; they were aggravated more than ever, burning with a fiery vengeance that made her want to break down with the sheer hopelessness of it all. Her eyes were drawn back to the flickering light. It was the last thing she saw before she passed out with exhaustion, her forehead coming to rest on the warm metal bar.

* * *

One moment there was darkness. The next, there was light. With a gasp, Leo shot up and lashed out at the nearest object. Unfortunately, that happened to be the wall. With a sickening crack, he hit it face-first and slid down in a comical manner. He knew that his face would be red from the close-contact meeting with the wall, and, turning around, confirmed it. Then Leo remembered everything that had happened: the duel, losing, the reactor... Ashley. He wouldn't die because he cared about her too much and it...

He shook himself out of that mindset. _Ashley_ was alive. Ashley _was_ alive. Ashley was _alive_. Just as it promised, he could feel it in his bones. Leo slid his feet off the surface he was sitting on (a bed, he dully noticed,) and realized he was only wearing boxers. The rest of his clothes had been taken at some point while he was unconscious. He looked around and saw a white wardrobe that matched the bland walls... and everything else in the room, for that matter. Even his boxers were white! And he didn't even remember putting on white boxers that morning, either. He thought they'd been blue.

Ignoring what that may have meant, choosing instead to believe he was mistaken, Leo threw open the doors of the wardrobe and inspected the insides. The left side held a small coat rack that took all the space from bottom to top. There were two things occupying that area, a black green-trimmed coat that looked pretty cool at first glance, and a pair of black anonymous sneakers.

The right side held a number of open shelves, two of them holding an article of clothing that he couldn't immediately identify. Below those was a small closed shelf, and below that, a larger shelf that grazed the bottom of the wardrobe. Opening those, he found a rolled pair of socks, a deck of dueling cards, and a Dark Signer's dueling disk. He left the cards and deck in favor of the socks, which he took along with the clothing above on the shelves. He threw them all on the bed he had been sleeping in and pulled everything on.

The two pieces of clothing he had seen happened to be a black t-shirt that had green flame designs on it, earning immediate approval from Leo, and a pair of black pants with the same flames sprouting from the ends of the legs. Whoever had designed them clearly had good taste. The socks, unfortunately, were simply white, and sported no extra designs on them, disappointing him. The black shoes, Leo soon found, had green soles which cheered him up slightly.

The coat was the best part of it all. Leo had been wrong when he had called it cool. It. Was. _Awesome_. It was designed in a similar fashion to the Dark Signer's capes, but was a trench coat instead of the Little Red Riding Hood style cloaks that they commonly wore, though it still had a hood as well. Sticking with the pattern set by the rest of his clothing, the coat was mainly black, but had green trim around the hems of the sleeves and around the bottom edge that grew into green flames. On the back, they rose to their highest at his shoulder blades, and looked scarily realistic. They almost flickered with heat as he gazed at it with admiration and elation.

Leo quickly donned the coat and closed the only two buttons at the collar, absolutely delighted with the piece. He snatched up the deck he had found earlier and the Dark Signer duel disk before shutting the wardrobe and leaving the room. He already knew where he was needed.

* * *

Unlike her boyfriend, Ashley didn't go face-first into a wall. Instead, she rolled off her bed and jerked awake, confused as to why she hurt and was lying on her stomach, no the floor. She looked up and mentally face palmed at herself before standing up and throwing the blanket, which had fallen with her, back on the mattress. A quick inspection of the room proved it to be exactly the same as Leo's, not that she knew that. Unlike Leo, however, she was left with her clothes, which were well ripped up and burned. The wardrobe was opened and she fingered the coat that was inside.

It was sleeveless, which would make it more of a vest, but had no buttons or a zipper and a hood hanging from the neck; regardless, that fact didn't diminish from its beauty. It was mostly black, with red flames imprinted onto the surface that shimmered as though burning before her very eyes. They curled around the arm holes and along the seams, intricately designed. On the back they curled into shapes that she could have sworn were changing as she looked at them. She tore herself away from the jacket and inspected the rest of the clothing laid out for her. A pair of black shorts, complete with Dark Signer markings, and a red shirt, also imprinted with Dark Signer lines. A pair of simple sandals was waiting below the jacket.

Ashley quickly changed and stuffed her old clothing into one of the drawers, not bothering to linger on where the clothes had come from. She tugged on the inside of the jacket, where the zipper would be, forcing it to rest more comfortably on her shoulders. Once she was satisfied, she dug through the rest of the wardrobe, looking for the deck and Duel Disk she had seen. The duel disk was strapped onto her left arm, the older clutching tightly onto the cards. Warily, she opened the door that led out of the little, sterile-white room that had become her world.

* * *

Luna jerked awake, her breath quickening as she regained consciousness. Her sight seemed to pulse and a headache made itself quickly known, one that interfered with her vision. She closed her eyes and brought one hand up to cradle her head, not daring to make a noise for fear of worsening the pain. Her body began to pulse in time with the worsening pain, and the memory of the duel came back to her.

She shivered, and her body ached in response. Carefully, she slid one sleeve down to her elbow. Bruises puckered her skin, blotches of purple, yellow and blue. She looked like a damaged fruit. With a sigh, she forced the sleeve back down and slowly stood up, mindful of the pains that resonated through her being. Luna looked around, examining what she feared to be her new quarters.

One wall was entirely made of metal bars, a light gray that matched the stone of the other three walls; the room was otherwise bare. Luna leaned up against one of the stone walls and looked out into the hall. She saw other rooms, similar to her own. In the other direction, there were more rooms and a closed door.

The twin settled herself into the wall and closed her eyes. She might as well rest up while she had the chance. Who knew what the Dark Signers were planning to do with her and Akiza.

Akiza! She had forgotten about her entirely. Luna cringed guiltily, sending another wave of pain throughout her body. Well, it didn't seem that there was much she could do in this state, anyways.

* * *

"You two are to test yourselves against a pair of pre-determined opponents." Leo nodded, face set into an unreadable mask. He had pulled his hood up over his face, which shrouded his face rather well despite the bright lights. Ashley was standing next to him, hood up and Duel Disk prepped. "You know where to go."

* * *

Luna grasped at her throat as the dim light she could see began to darken, her throat constricting and begging for oxygen. With her fading strength she pounded at the wall in front of her, the metallic thuds weak even to her own ears. Wit ha final slam, the wall opened before her, both the girl and the metal falling to the ground. Luna gasped for air and coughed, the sound drowning out an identical sound next to her as Akiza fell to her knees, gulping down air. They both shuddered as their bodies acclimated to the oxygen levels in the room, and with shaky arms and legs, stood up as best as they were able.

"Are," Luna coughed, "are they letting us go? How'd we get here?"

"I don't know," Akiza wheezed. "I just remember being in a cell and then nothing. Then I was in that thing."

"No," a third voice said, its owner coming into the room.

"Who are you?" Akiza tried to growl, but with her damaged lungs, it petered out as a whimper.

"I know that voice," Luna said. It's Lester."

"Yes, I am," he confirmed. "I will let the two of you go only if you can defeat my duelists in a two-on-two duel. If you lose, however, you will be mine, and you will succumb to the darkness within yourselves."

"Fine," Luna spat, recovering faster than her older friend. "But I'll only duel if you tell us where my brother and Ashley are."

"So these are our opponents?" Two figures came into the room behind Lester; one wore a black and green trench coat, the other a red and black hooded vest. "This duel should be fun," the green-robed one said.

"'Course it will," the other one chided. "Hey," she said to the two weakened duelists. "You two have been put into these healing chambers so you'd be ready to duel faster."

"I don't care!" Luna yelled. "Where's my brother?" Both stopped, hesitating. They seemed to look at each other and then at Luna.

"You've forgotten about me that fast?" the green one asked, pulling down his hood. Luna gasped; that _couldn't _have been Leo. The red one followed suit, revealing Ashley. "I'm ashamed to call myself your brother, if you can't recognize me on sight," Leo sighed.

"You can't be him! Where's the real Leo?"

"I am your brother. Ashley and I are the new darkness that you will face, and once we beat you, you two will become darkness yourselves. Master Lester will lock you up and keep you two stable so you won't die, and then you'll face your own duelists so the change can complete itself on you two."

"That's why you two were locked up, until _we_ were ready to duel. Leo, I'll take Akiza. I wanted to show her something I learned at the party, but since that's obviously not an option now, I'll show her in this duel." Ashley flipped her hood back up, her brown-turned-red eyes locking onto the psychic duelist, visible despite the hood. "Now, feel my powers."

Something cold settled over them all and, having experienced such a feeling before, it took little for the two Signers to realize what power Ashley was referring to.

"No way, she's a psychic duelist?" Akiza said.

"Leo, I don't care what happened to you and Ashley," Luna said, ignoring the two girls. "I'll beat you and get you back to normal."

"Luna, I know this duel won't be easy, with the two of them being Dark Signers," Akiza said, eyes still on her opponent, "but we can't lose focus. They're our opponents now and one of them is a psychic duelist."

"Well, if you really want to know what happened," Leo said, waving one arm in a carefree gesture, "you'll be filled in on everything when you join us. And the sooner you lose this duel, the sooner you'll know. And since we can be nice, and we'll win this anyways, you two can take the first moves. And don't hold back." With that, Leo turned up his hood, shrouding his face again. Only his now-green eyes could be seen glowing though the darkness the hood provided.

"We know you're still recovering from your last battle, and are still recovering from the stress the healing chamber can cause. It's not like it matters, since you'll be healed again after this duel, when you join our master," Ashley idly commented.

"You're not taking the first move? Alright, then I'll go first. I draw, and play Morphtronic Base Form. Now I can normal summon two Morphtronic monsters on each of my turns. So I summon Morphtronic Magician in Defense position and Morphtronic Celfon in Defense, and end my turn with three additional facedown cards."

"When did you get that card? You've never had it before," Luna asked.

"My turn," Ashley squealed in her usual manner, interrupting her boyfriend. "I summon Ice Dragon Level 3 and play Ice Word Wave. Now I can summon another monster this turn, and I play Shadow Ice Girl in Attack mode, and two cards face down to end my turn."

"Alright, my turn," Luna said, frustrated that she didn't hear her brother's answer. "I play a monster in facedown Defense and two cards, facedown. I end my turn."

"I draw and summon Lord Poison in Attack mode," Akiza said. "I play Rose Wave and can now summon Twilight Rose Knight. Now it's time to give my monsters a tune up. Let the spirit of the earth intertwine with the essence of the sky. I Synchro Summon Black Rose Dragon; next, I play Monster Reborn to summon my Rose Knight.

"With Rose Rod, I may summon my Lord Poison back from the Graveyard and may tune him again with my Knight. I Synchro Summon Moon Flower Dragon!"

A glowing form, similar to Black Rose but smaller and thinner in form appeared on the field. Its pearly body and petals glowed with an ethereal light, a yin to Black Rose's yang.

"Moon Flower, attack Ashley's Ice Dragon, and Black Rose, destroy Shadow Ice Girl!"

"Ah," Ashley grunted, her Life Points dropping by five hundred. "I activate my facedown trap Call of the Haunted to bring back my Ice Dragon."

"Fine, keep your dragon," Akiza spat, getting into the game. "I end my turn."

"I'll draw," Leo began, "and summon Morphtronic Scopen and Boomboxen to the field and tune them together. When the shadows are devoured by even darker shadows, the curtain pulls back and reveals a world without light! Come forth, Dark Power Tool Dragon!"

A shadowed version of Leo's signature card entered the field, menacing as it stared down at Leo. The dragon's usual golden skin and metal plating was closer to the color of mud, and its white eyes were a deep gray. Sparks jumped from its metallic attachments, and steam hissed from the dragon's mouth. All in all, it looked as though it was beginning to malfunction. The dragon briefly swung its head around to Black Rose, neck squealing with an earsplitting screech, before returning to Luna with the cough of an old motor.

"Now, since Dark Power Tool's on the field, I can play Tool Darkness Wave and summon Dark Morphtronic Lighton." The paradoxical monster pulsed with a dark light, watching Power Tool warily. "I can tune Lighton with Dark Power Tool: the courage and power to protect the planet is a revolution! Synchro Summon! Evolve, Dark Life Stream Dragon!"

The new dragon resembled the old one, except without the armor plating. The dark dragon panted and growled , crouching down on all fours and paced the field impatiently. The monster was ready to fight, and it wished dearly to test itself against the Signer dragons.

"I sue Tuner's light, and make Morphtronic Celfon a Tuner monster. I can now tune him with Morphtronic Magician. If you want to risk this iron monster's wrath, go right ahead! Synchro Summon! Power Tool Mecha Dragon!"

A buffed up version of Power Tool appeared on the field; its right arm was covered with a thick blue armor, while the left sported a laser cannon attached to the dragon's forearm. The dragon's red power cell glowed in its chest, lighting up its mechanical veins throughout the rest of its body. The new monster high-fived its Dark brother and they both stared at Luna, eager for a battle and effectively disturbing the girl.

"I equip Power Tool Mecha with Dark Axe, so its attack increases from 2400 to 3400. Because of Mecha's effect, I can draw another card." He looked at the card he picked up and grinned, sliding it onto the field. "Sorry, sister, but I play Dragon Dark Destroyer. Say goodbye to all your facedown cards."

"No," Luna cried, as the virtual cards exploded into small bits of visual data and the cars were spit out of her Duel Disk.

"Go, Dark Life Stream, attack Luna's Defense position monster! Power Tool, attack Luna directly!"

Luna doubled over as the monsters attacked, dropping her Life Points to 6600. The second attack brought back the constriction in her chest that the pod had induced, and she had to wheeze for breath as the dragons retreated.

"I'll end my turn, sis."

"I'll draw," Ashley said, ignorant to Luna's pain. "I send my Ice Dragon Level 3 to the grave so I can play Ice Dragon Level 5. With these two Level Up cards, I can summon Ice Dragon Level 10." The small icy creature was replaced with a larger one, which was in turn replaced with a whiteout that spanned her entire side of the field, Ashley barely visible through the blizzard. "Now, I play Blizzard Stream Witches." A trio of white-adorned women appeared in the storm, each carrying a staff topped with an ice-colored orb.

"Their effect allows me to summon two more monsters during this turn. I play Fire Nova Dragon and Snow Fairy!" The first monster spawned in a burst of flames, allowing for its heated hide to be seen through the blasts of cold. The beast's green eyes glinted through the flames and snow. The second monster, Snow Fairy, was a tiny creature that wore a white ankle-length dress. Her hand-sized wings worked hard to keep her alight, until she landed on one of Fire Nova's white bullish horns, comfortable despite their temperature differences.

"Using the second part of Blizzard Witches' effect, if I Synchro Summon this turn, I can tune any two monsters to play a Level 8 Synchro. I tune Fire Nova Dragon with Snow Fairy. Behold, as the gates of ice open up into a world of darkness as the shadows join together to become an ultimate power! I Synchro Summon my Dark Red Blizzard Dragon!"

A crimson haze, not dissimilar to the former dragon's mist, covered the field and made the two Signers lightheaded. The ground turned to ice beneath their feet, red pooling out from the center of the field like blood. The ice loudly cracked and the Synchro burst from the ground with an earsplitting roar, shadows trailing behind its body as it settled on Ashley's side of the field, large body curling lazily. Its head settled next to its masters, ruby wings drifting down protectively as it glared at Akiza with murderous, golden eyes.

"Now I play Red Snow Failure. Akiza, now you can't use any face down cards during the Battle Phase. Go, Dark Red Blizzard Dragon, destroy Black Rose Dragon"

The ice beast faded into nothing and the plant dragon backed up, head whipping around in alarm. Frost began forming on its petals and the dragon keened, whipping around. The petals began wilting as the temperature dropped, killing the weaker monster. The frost turned into snow, which hardened into hail, covering the plant dragon in a pile of frozen water. There was a muffled whine from the pile and it all dissipated into pixels as the blizzard beast reformed on Ashley's side of the field.

Akiza placed one hand on her heart as her signature dragon was destroyed, forcing her Life Points to 7200.

"Ice Dragon, take out Akiza's Moon Flower Dragon!"

The blizzard converged on the glowing beast. Nothing could be seen through the storm, but the dragon's terrified shrieks had no trouble piercing through the harsh winds. When the unnatural blizzard retreated, nothing was left of the psychic's monster. Said duelist was down on one knee, clutching at her chest. The blows seemed to be aimed at her heart, which was on fire with pain. Akiza panted, her Life Points at 6800.

"Because my Ice Dragon Level 10 dealt damage to you by attacking one of your monsters, I can activate Blizzard Deal Draw. I draw two cards, and if any of them are spells, you, Akiza, lose 1000 Life Points for each spell." Two cards slid out from the top of the Deck slot and Ashley inspected them closely. "Perfect; they were both spells."

With the 2000 point hit, lowering her down to 4800, Akiza felt the fiery pain in her heart begin to spread to the rest of her body, immobilizing her limbs and numbing her extremities. With difficulty, she stood herself back up, eyes unfocused on her ice-based opponent.

"I'll end with one face down."

"My turn," Akiza forced out. She flexed her fingers in an attempt to get blood flowing again and was rewarded with a familiar pins-and-needles feeling as her nerves slowly responded. "I play Black Rose Recall and special summon Black Rose Dragon back to the field with one Plant-type monster from my Deck, Amarylease." The flowery dragon returned, but something was different about it. It almost seemed... scared. Fearful, even. Next to the gargantuan dragon was a single potted flower. "Now, I summon Majestic Dragon to the field and tune it to my Black Rose Dragon and Amarylease to play Majestic Rose Dragon!"

The tiny pink dragon fused with the flower and the Signer dragon, forming a new monster. Unlike Black Rose, whose torso was dominated by a rose and made it a quadrapedal monster, Majestic Rose stood on two bird-like feet, its pale rose petals forming an exoskeletal armor that extended over its four wings, which replaced the two large rosy wings the original dragon sported. Its tail was left bare, a red spiraling line the only thing that distinguished the appendage from several thorny whips that spouted from the monster's shoulders. Its helmeted head shrouded its fierce gaze, giving it an overall beautiful yet dangerous appearance.

"Now, I use Majestic Rose Dragon's effect to destroy all cards on your side of the field! Majestic Rose Dragon, attack Ashley directly!"

"You'll pay for that, Akiza," Ashley taunted, voice playful, despite her Life Points falling to 4500. The only indication that her powers were still working was the wince that slipped through, and the slight limp that showed when she shifted her weight.

"I can activate the Trap Card Blizzard: Reborn from my hand if Dark Red Blizzard Dragon is destroyed by a card effect. So, here's Blizzard Dragon!

"Fine, keep your dragon, I'll end my turn."

"You know, Akiza," Ashley said, twirling a strand of hair between her fingers that had fallen out of her hood, "you already said that earlier, when I brought back my Ice Dragon Level 3."

Akiza froze, trying to recall if that was true. Luna shoo her head and got back into the game. This was something of a matter of life and death, after all.

"I'll draw," Luna said, snapping her partner out of her daze. "I play Fairy Deal. By sending monsters to the Graveyard, I can summon my Ancient Fairy Dragon to the field."

The lizard-like dragon seemed nervous as she appeared, unwilling to meet her master's eye or those of her opponents, Duel Monster or human.

"I play Fairy's Wish, and by discarding one Spell Card from my hand, I can summon one monster from the Graveyard. I summon Akiza's Amarylease, and normal summon Majestic Dragon to the field! I tune the three monsters so I can play Majestic Fairy Dragon!"

The gentle dragon's skin became armored, much like her companion's. In the center of her chest sat a large red gem, whose golden gilding extended throughout the rest of the armor, outlining each plate. The shoulders were adorned with two similar, but smaller, red gems, as did each section of plating down her stomach and tail, ending at her arrowhead tail, which sported twin green fins, completing the arrow shape. She had six fairy wings: four from a side section on each of her shoulder blades, and a second folded pair that lay flat against her back. A golden mask extended past her head, keeping her green mane back and out of her face.

"I can play down Ancient Forest, and use Majestic Fairy's effect to destroy all Trap and Spell Cards on your field by sacrificing my Field Card. By equipping Ancient Spellbook to my dragon, she can attack twice during the Battle Phase and increases to 6500 Attack points on the second attack, only. Majestic Fairy, attack Leo's Dark Life Stream Dragon!"

The male twin grunted as his Life Points fell to 7200 and gave his sister a pained smile.

"Now, destroy Power Tool Mecha Dragon!"

Leo let one arm snake around his waist as he groaned. His stomach threatened to heave up his lunch but he kept the mess down, concentrating hard through the sudden pain. When the force faded, he glared up at his sister, who seemed to sense she had crossed a line.

"I end my turn," she said, a tremor entering her voice.

"You know, Luna? I was going easy on you. It doesn't matter what happened to me, you're still my sister." He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, and when he opened them again, fixed his sister with a hard look. "But now, play time is over. I can discard Dragon Soul Pod from my hand, and while it's in my Graveyard, once per turn, I can summon Dark Life Stream Dragon from the Graveyard once per turn.

"I summon Dark Life Stream, Majestic Dragon and Dark Morphtronic Scopen to play Dark Majestic Stream Dragon."

"4000 Attack points," Luna said, shaking her head.

"I activate my dragon's effect, and pay half my life points to summon the three monsters used to summon him. Now I play Tool Summoner to bring back my Dark Power Tool Dragon. Now I can tune Majestic Dragon to Scopen and Power Tool to play Dark Majestic Tool Dragon."

The majestic dark bronzed dragon was more streamlined than before. Its hands were less bulky, but the left was entirely replaced with a cannon. Both wings were more blade-like, less intention towards flying than there was to maiming. Its tail was light blue metal that ended in a small electrical generator that crackled with surplus energy. The dragon growled deeply at all of its opponents, focus switching between Akiza and Luna.

"Another dragon with over 3500 Attack," Luna muttered.

"Now I can play Master Tool, and summon three more Morphtronic monsters, Videon, Magnen and Boarden, which I can send to my Graveyard to summon my ultimate monster, Earthbound Immortal: King of the Underworld."

The large monster sat behind its master on a dark throne. One hand held up a simple scepter, bearing resemblance to Ashley's Blizzard Stream Witches. A black crown sat on his head, above a featureless face. His robes and throne were adorned with the symbols of the Earthbound monsters and emitted green light, as did the capped end of the staff he wielded.

"Luna, it has 4000 Attack points," Akiza warned, quickly becoming concerned.

"Majestic Tool Dragon, destroy Majestic Fairy Dragon."

The slim machine launched itself at the armored fairy and –quite literally– tore her in two. The fairy was quickly disposed of and Dark Majestic tool Dragon returned to Leo's side of the field, now staring at Majestic Rose Dragon. Luna bit back a cry as her dragon was destroyed, but the pain was quickly ignored as Leo continued.

"Dark Majestic Stream Dragon and Earthbound Immortal: King of the Underworld, finish Luna off!"

"No, Leo," Luna pleaded, "please don't. I know you're still in there somewhere!"

"I haven't changed a bit," Leo said, smiling at his sister like it was their birthday.

Both monsters attacked the female twin, and she screamed as her Life Points hit 0. Although neither monster could physically touch her, their attacks could still affect her surroundings. Stream Dragon hit the ground before her, the resulting shockwave knocking her back. The King of the Underworld knocked the butt of his scepter into the ground and the rocks rose up, splintering into pieces that trapped her, keeping Akiza from rushing to the younger girl's aid.

"I end my turn," Leo concluded placidly.

"How can you say that so uncaringly?" Akiza yelled. "She's your sister!"

"My move," Ashley interrupted with a roll of her eyes. "Someone obviously hasn't been listening, so I'll summon Majestic Dragon and Fire Nova Dragon, using Blizzard Witches' effect and tune them with Dark Red Blizzard Dragon. When the shadows are devoured by even darker shadows, the curtain pulls back and reveals a world without light! Come forth, Dark Majestic Blizzard Dragon!"

The monster was serpentine in form, floating above the ground. Looking at it face on, its face would look like an explosion due to its red scales and the thick ruff coming out from its neck. A series of golden jewels ran down its spine from beneath the ruff, matching its illuminant eyes. Its mouth was bared in a permanent smile, the ends of its needle teeth stained a faint pink for reasons unknown. The dragon settled down by its master, feathered tail resting beneath its chin.

"I play Ice Summoner; by paying half my Life Points, and discarding all but one card from my hand to the Graveyard, I can summon any three monsters from the grave. I summon Ice Dragon Level 5, Level 7, and Level 10. I play the Field Card Ice World Two, which allows the owner to summon an Ice Dragon Level 3 and Dark Red Blizzard Dragon from the Graveyard. I sacrifice Dark Red Blizzard Dragon to summon Sleet Dragon.

"3000 Attack points for the Sleet Dragon, 3900 for the Majestic. Wonderful," Akiza said sarcastically.

"I send Ice Dragon Level 5, 7, and 10 to the grave so I can summon Earthbound Immortal: Ice Lord."

The second Immortal looked similar to the King of the Underworld, though 'Lord' was something of a bad description. The monster was more a queen than it was male, with a slimmer, curvier figure than a lord would be. She held a sword, as opposed to the king's scepter, and wore a black crown of ice.

"And 4000 more Attack points. I'm dead," Akiza deadpanned.

"Dark Majestic Blizzard Dragon, attack Majestic Rose Dragon." The serpentine dragon blasted a beam of ice shards at the plant dragon, tearing through its armor like it didn't exist. "When Blizzard Dragon destroys an opponent's monster, all cards on the opponent's field are destroyed." Akiza covered her mouth with one arm and coughed as the dragon attacked. She wasn't surprised to see blood beginning to stain the sleeve. "Sleet Dragon, Earthbound Immortal: Ice Lord, attack Akiza directly!"

Akiza squeezed her eyes shut as the attack came, blasting her backwards into one of the healing pods. She grasped at her head, which had come into direct contact with both the pod and the wall.

"I'm sorry, she coughed, bringing up more blood. "I'm sorry to have failed to save you two. I failed to save all of us." Her voice trailed off as the world blurred and she fell unconscious, the damage done to her body too great to keep awake.

"Good duel," Lester said, having spoken for the first time since the duel began.

"Thank you Master," both Dark Signers said, bowing to him.

"Those were some _awesome _moves!" Toby yelled, barreling through the door.

"Nice Immortals you were paired off with," Maria complimented, coming after Toby.

Both paused to bow to Lester, who said, "I see that the two of you are finished healing."

"Yes Master, we are," they confirmed.

"Ashley, Leo, I'll allow you two the honor of turning these two here into Dark Signers. We cannot have them die here, so Toby, Maria, guide them through the steps. While they are paired with an Immortal and recover, I would like for you two," he pointed to Toby and Maria, "to scout out the last three Signers while Leo and Ashley rest up from their duel. Once you two," he now gestured to the newest Dark Signers, "are finished, you'll be joining them in their mission. Once Luna and Akiza are ready, we will position them so Luna shall face Crow and Jack will take on Akiza. I will face Yusei myself."

"Master, are you sure you want to duel? The last time you've dueled was when you turned us two into Dark Signers," Toby questioned.

"Sir, that was several years ago. Perhaps you should practice, just so you can be sure of how your deck will fare against Yusei's," Maria suggested. Lester considered it for a moment but shook his head.

"Ashley, Leo, Toby, Maria, I'll show you my true Immortal. The one I used against you, Maria, before Toby was a Dark Signer himself. This real Earthbound Immortal, Eternal Machine General. See, Toby, you don't need to worry about me facing Yusei."

"That has to be the strongest Earthbound Immortal I've seen, with 5000 Attack points," Toby said, inspecting the card.

"We must hurry," Lester insisted. "They only have so long before they will die from the duel." Leo lifted up his twin while Ashley struggled to lift the sixteen year old. "There is a small window of time we have been granted, and we must take it. Maria, would you help Ashley? It appears that Akiza is heavier than we expected."

The sandy-haired girl ran over and took the psychic duelist from Ashley's arms, allowing the younger girl to lead her to the catwalk where all of them had been turned into Dark Signers. Lester wordlessly watched them leave the room, thoughts running in circles, but always leading back to the same point.

Luna.


End file.
